A major technology outage forced McDonald's stores in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom to either shutter operations or suspend online ordering on Friday, CNN reported.

"Many stores across the country have temporarily suspended operations," McDonald's Japan wrote in an X post, adding, "There is currently a system failure." 

"We are aware of a technology outage currently impacting our restaurants nationwide and are working to resolve this issue as soon as possible," a McDonald's Australia spokesperson told CNN.

McDonald's Hong Kong wrote on Facebook: "Due to a computer system failure, the mobile ordering and self-ordering kiosks are not functioning. Please order directly at the restaurant counter."

McDonald's told BBC News the issue is unrelated to cyber-security but wouldn't provide further details.